A woman who is nursing an infant typically will express breast milk to store for times when she is unable or unavailable to breast feed her infants. Breast pumps are used to express and store breast milk for later use. Two types of breast pumps are generally available: motor-driven pumps and manually-operated pumps. These pumps typically include a funnel-shaped cup (called a breast shield) that fits over the nipple (and a substantial portion of the breast), a vacuum pump (e.g., manually driven piston cylinder, squeeze bulb, or electrically driven vacuum device) that generates an intermittent vacuum in the breast cup, and a container for the expressed breast milk. The intermittent suction generated by the vacuum pump within the breast cup causes a pulling or pressing of the breast, which is intended to mimic an infant's suckling action, thereby expressing milk. The collection container, such as a small milk bottle, is ordinarily connected to the breast cup through an intermediate milk-directing channel and valve arrangement. The expressed milk typically flows from the breast cup to the collection container for storage. In use, a woman expresses her milk by using the electric or manual pumping device in conjunction with the shield, which the woman holds tightly against her nipple to create suction and to direct the flow of milk into a storage container.
Clothing has been adapted to simplify the task of breast feeding. For example, nursing brassieres include a bra cup with a flap that is unfastened to partially expose a breast, enabling nursing or the collection of breast milk through pumping. Similarly, shirts such as tank tops often include a panel that is unfastened to expose one or both breasts.
Such clothing, while helpful, does not remedy the work intensive nature of pumping. When using the breast pump, the mother must manually hold the breast cup over the exposed portion of the breast. Due to the length of time required to express milk when using a pump, a woman oftentimes expresses both breasts simultaneously. To express both breasts, the woman must hold a funnel with each hand against her breasts, leaving her an awkward position, as well as unable to enjoy other activities. As a result, the nursing mother will not have the full use of both hands to perform other tasks. Therefore, it would be advantageous to develop a method and device that will permit a mother to use a conventional breast pump while also allowing her the free use of her hands to perform other tasks.